


come out an angel

by LiveLaughLovex



Series: down these mean streets [9]
Category: Blue Bloods (TV)
Genre: F/M, Post-Episode: s10e09 Grave Errors, mentions of domestic abuse, mentions of domestic violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-23
Updated: 2019-11-23
Packaged: 2021-02-26 15:21:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 862
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21530302
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LiveLaughLovex/pseuds/LiveLaughLovex
Summary: "You’ve always treated me with respect, Jamie, even when you barely knew me. You’re the first man in my life who’s ever done that, you know.”“You’ve deserved it from every single one of them,” he replied definitively, his tone full of a hidden anger directed at every single one of the men who’d come before him.“I know that now. I do.”(Post "Grave Errors." Jamie and Eddie discuss domestic violence.)
Relationships: Edit "Eddie" Janko/Jamie Reagan
Series: down these mean streets [9]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1507463
Comments: 4
Kudos: 25





	come out an angel

**Author's Note:**

> "She's been through hell and come out an angel. You didn't break her, darling. You don't own that kind of power." - Unknown

Jamie was in the kitchen when Eddie got home that night, sitting at the table with the previous day’s paper opened in front of him. He glanced up when the door closed behind her, offering her the same smile he always did – one so full of love and admiration it made every bit of stress she’d endured during the day melt from her body. “Hey. I ordered in from that Chinese place up the block you like so much. It should be here in half an hour or so.”

“Thank you,” she murmured gratefully, slipping off her jacket and hanging it up next to him. She kicked off her shoes, lining them up next to the coat rack, then made her way towards him, claiming the seat across from him with a weary sigh.

“You all right?” Jamie questioned, eyes filled with concern as they met hers. “Everything went okay with McNichols?”

“Yeah,” Eddie confirmed, her eyes drifting shut as she scooted forward to lay her head on the table, the physical and emotional tolls of the day finally sinking in. “I mean, as well as it could’ve gone. I still…” She trailed off, shaking her head. “I don’t understand how you can claim to love someone one moment and then turn around and blame them for the fact that you’ve just beaten the hell out of them the next.”

“You have problems beyond whatever’s going on in your life and your marriage,” Jamie replied quietly. “Her ex-husband didn’t start hitting her because he was having problems at work, Eddie. That might’ve been his excuse, but it wasn’t his reason. Not really.”

“No, I know.” Eddie shifted slightly, resting her chin atop her folded arms, and stared up at her husband. “But that’s not the point. She blames herself. She thinks what he did is her fault. And I get that, because there was a time when I felt the exact same way. For a really long period in my life, I blamed the things guys like Skip Fuller and Jake Singer did on myself.” She shrugged. “And I knew it wasn’t right. I knew it wasn’t my fault that they felt entitled to something that wasn’t theirs, that hadn’t even been offered to them. But that didn’t make me feel any less weak. It didn’t make me feel any less like I was as much to blame for it as they were.”

“I’m sorry,” Jamie murmured sympathetically, reaching across the table to intertwine their fingers.

“Don’t be,” she replied just as softly. “You’re a big part of the reason all that changed. You’ve always treated me with respect, Jamie, even when you barely knew me. And you’ve always looked out for me; you’ve always cared about what I want and what I need. You’re the first man in my life who’s ever done any of those things, you know.”

“You’ve deserved it from every single one of them,” he replied definitively, his tone full of a hidden anger directed at every single one of the men who’d come before him.

“I know that now. I do.” She squeezed his hand lightly. “But there was a time I didn’t, and that – it makes it easier to understand where McNichols is coming from, you know? Like – do you remember, after what happened with Jake Singer, how I tried to shut you out? I threatened to report you, I said so many awful things to you…” She shook her head. “Taking it out on you was easier than taking it out on myself. That’s why McNichols has spent all this time blaming your father and your family for what her husband did. It’s because it’s easier to blame the person who saw the truth in somebody sooner than you did than it is to admit to yourself that you didn’t just let this person who hurt you into your life, but you did it with open arms.”

“Yeah.” Jamie shook his head. “I – I can’t imagine.”

“Well, that’s ’cause you can’t imagine ever hurting someone you love more than anything in the world,” Eddie replied gently. “You and your brother, you were both raised in a way that you would rather shoot yourself in the foot than lift a hand to your spouse. Not every man’s father raises him that way. I’m not saying it’s right, but for a lot of women, that is just – that’s the way it is. For a long time, that’s the way I thought it had to be. Then you came into my life, and, even before we were together, you showed me how it’s supposed to be.” She rested her cheek atop their hands. “I just hope McNichols finds someone to show her, so she can see it’s not her fault.”

“Yeah,” he murmured, smiling sadly. “So do I.”

“Yeah,” she echoed just as softly. “Hey,” she added, drawing his attention once more. “I love you.”

“Love you, too,” he said instantly, as if those three words were the answer to every question he’d ever asked and an explanation of every mystery in the universe all in one.

That made sense. To the two of them, they were. 

**Author's Note:**

> The number for the National Domestic Violence Hotline (United States) is 1-800-799-7233.


End file.
